Big News
by LisaBleachFan
Summary: Rukia is named Byakuya's heir and told something that will change her life drastically. She returns from the Soul Society to spend time with Ichigo in the world of the living. Ichigo (now graduated from college) is oblivious to the news and is instead focusing on making her day special... After all, it IS Rukia's birthday. Ichi/Ruki. Complete.
1. Birthday

Long time no see my fanfiction brethren!

So the Bleach manga is back and I am _too _excited.

(Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo)

Here is a new story I have been playing with.

Yes, it's rated M for mature, but there is no lemon in this chapter (but there will be one in this story), so stay tuned!

Enjoy!

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia Kuchiki remained with her head held high as her older brother spoke.

He had called her into a meeting with other important members of the Kuchiki-clan.

Byakuya Kuchiki sat at the head of the group, and she sat to her bother's right. The rest of the Kuchiki-family members were surrounding them in two different, long lines.

She was sitting up straight with a blank expression on her face. In her mind, she tried to grasp and comprehend the meaning behind his words.

"It's time Rukia, don't you agree?" her brother-in-law asked calmly.

The question snapped her back to reality.

-o-

"H-hai brother…" she squeaked out.

She blushed, embarrassed by own reaction.

Clearing her throat, she spoke again, this time more refined, "How long do you expect the process to take?"

"That will all depend on_ the quality of the candidates_… It could be soon, in just a matter of weeks, or it could take several months. Do not trouble yourself by worrying; I will make sure that everything goes along smoothly. You are my heir, and I want you to be happy."

"Yes. Thank you brother." The young woman stated.

After bowing respectfully to her brother and to the other clan-members, she slowly walked out of the room. After she had left, she all but bolted out of the mansion.

She ran back to her post as the Lieutenant of Squad 13.

-o-

Rukia retreated and hid herself away.

She felt safe and at peace in her own office.

She hoped to distract herself by doing paper work, but groaned in displeasure when she read the note on her desk.

Captain Ukitake, her captain, wanted to speak with her.

She frowned.

_Not Again!_

She wasn't sure how much more BIG NEWS she could handle in one day…

-o-

Rukia knocked politely on her captain's office.

"Yes?" the older man asked.

"Um… You wanted to see me sir?"

"Ah, Kuchiki-san! Yes, please come in!" he said cheerfully.

Rukia entered the room and closed the door behind her.

"Please, have a seat Lieutenant."

The short-haired soul-reaper did as she was instructed.

"So… How have you been feeling Captain Ukitake?" she asked, trying to make small talk with her mentor.

"I've felt great lately, thank you for asking. How did the meeting with the Kuchiki-clan go today?" he questioned.

A look of pure panic crossed her features.

"Oh… Don't worry, Captain Kuchiki filled me in because I'm your Captain… There is no gossip going around," He tried to assure her.

The girl relaxed slightly, blushing.

"I'm sorry I brought it up." he said awkwardly, mentally berating himself. He should have known better than to question her, she probably hadn't even had the chance to let it all sink in yet.

"It's alright Captain, I just… have to get used to the idea is all." She assured him with a smile.

Her captain nodded his head. He decided now was as good a time as any to change topics.

"Anyways, I went through your evaluation earlier. I think it may be best if you take some time off-"

Rukia's violet eyes widened in surprise, "Take some time off? But why sir? I haven't done anything wrong!" she protested.

The Captain of Squad 13 laughed loudly and interrupted her, "Calm down Kuchiki, your evaluation came out perfect! I was trying to tell you take a _vacation_."

"A-a vacation?"

"Yes Lieutenant, a month-long vacation. Might I suggest the world of the living? I hear it's very beautiful during the winter." He suggested.

Rukia tried to mask her excitement. The world of the living? She could go see Ichigo… and the rest of her friends.

"Alright, thank you Captain." She responded. She couldn't contain the large grin on her face.

Captain Ukitake nodded his head and Rukia stood to leave.

"Oh, and Rukia,"

"Yes Captain Ukitake?"

"Have a great day."

-o-

-o-

-o-

A tall, young man stood in the kitchen of his apartment.

Ichigo Kurosaki smirked as he finished pouring himself a cup of coffee.

The hot liquid filled a black mug decorated with a simple white 'K' on it.

The substitute soul reaper sensed the young woman as she approached his door.

"Oi, come in, Rukia." He called out loudly.

Moments later, the girl stepped inside.

She was wearing a knee-length purple dress with a white jacket over it, and she was carrying a large tote with her. Once inside the apartment, she closed the door behind her.

Setting her tote down on the floor, she pouted, "How'd you know it was me?"

The twenty-three year old man shrugged as he turned back to his cabinet to pull out a second cup for the soul reaper.

It was pink with chappy-the-rabbit on it.

"I sensed you the moment you entered the world of the living." He said truthfully.

Rukia nodded as she slipped off her purple flats and white coat. Once she was done, she made her way into the kitchen.

"Sometimes I forget how powerful your spiritual abilities have become, _strawberry_." She said, adding the last bit playfully.

Ichigo didn't let the comment faze him, "I admit, sometimes it surprises me too, especially considering _how small you are, midget_."

Rukia sent a fake glare at him, but she wasn't _really _angry. She always missed playing around with him…

"So where is Kon?" she asked, looking around for the small lion plushy/mod soul. Usually, he would have run to her by now and greeted her.

"He's been staying at Urahara's shop the past week, trying to convince lend him a spare gigai body."

Rukia chuckled a bit. That sounded like something Kon would do…

"So do you have any plans today Ichigo?" she asked as she took a seat on a stool as he poured her a cup of coffee.

"Sort-of." He said as he reached to hand her the milk and creamer and took a seat in the stool across from hers.

"Oh." She replied softly.

Ichigo sensed the disappointment in her voice. He inwardly smirked at himself.

They drank their coffee in comfortable silence.

-o-

"So how long will you be staying?" he finally questioned.

It was always different each time: sometimes the lieutenant soul reaper stayed months, other times just weeks, or days, or just hours…

The dark-haired woman sighed, "I don't have any pending assignments, so about a month, unless I get called back for an emergency."

Ichigo nodded his head in understanding. When he looked up at her, he noticed the look in her big violet eyes. She wanted to tell him something. He knew it.

"Is there something else?" he asked.

Rukia stuttered a bit, caught off guard by his question, "No, it's nothing."

She turned away from him.

The young man sighed. He knew her well enough to know he couldn't force any information out of her. She would tell him _whatever it_ was when she was ready, and not a second sooner.

Getting up from his stool, he walked to the table underneath his large flat screen TV. There, he picked up a small box wrapped in light blue tissue paper with purple dots on it.

Turning back to Rukia, he held it out for her.

"Here." He said.

She gasped as she looked at it.

"What, you didn't think I forgot today was birthday did you?"

-o-

Rukia smiled as he inspected the small box in her hands and marveled at the silky wrapping paper.

"You remembered." She said thoughtfully. No one in the Soul Society had remembered. Not Renji, not her captain, no one her squad, not even her older brother.

"Why wouldn't I?" he retorted, as if insulted.

She stuck out her tongue at him, "Well it wouldn't be the first time you've forgotten…"

"Give me a break already, that was three years ago!"

Rukia giggled as she succeeded in making him lose his temper. _He was still so predictable…_

Opening up the box, she pulled out a brand new, limited edition, chappy-the-rabbit plush toy.

"SO CUTE!" she squealed happily.

She brought the small rabbit doll up to her chest and continued to shriek as she crushed against her.

-o-

Ichigo rolled his eyes at her. What was it about that damn bunny that made Rukia and Yuzu act so childish?

"Thank you Ichigo, it's perfect!" she said to him with sparkling purple eyes.

The orange haired man suppressed his blush and rubbed his neck in embarrassment.

"It was nothing. And it wasn't all your present either-"

"Oh?" Rukia asked curiously.

He young man nodded his head, "I thought I'd take you shopping for your birthday too… Go set your stuff down in the guest room; we can leave when you're ready."

The soul reaper didn't have to be told twice!

Before Ichigo could _blink_ she had already disappeared down the hall and into the guest room.

-o-

Ichigo sat on the couch as he waited for Rukia to be ready. Turning on the TV, he flipped through the channels to find something good to watch.

He had graduated from Karakura University before the winter break, and upon graduating he received a high paying job in the University's prestigious research department.

Because of his new salary, he was looking into buying a home, but for now he was still content with his apartment. It had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a long hallway, a big living room, and good size kitchen.

His second bedroom was supposed to function as a guest room, but in reality was more like Rukia's room.

She stayed with him every time she came to the world of the living. The room was filled with her things, her clothes, her comforter, and her ridiculous chappy the rabbit and ambassador seaweed merchandise.

When Rukia finally emerged Ichigo turned off the TV and stood to stretch.

_'Oh well, may as well get this over with….' _he thought.

-o-

-o-

-o-

"Ichigo! I want to go in there next!" Rukia said excitedly as she ran from shop to shop inside the mall.

The orange haired man groaned as he reluctantly followed her.

His arms were full of shopping bags. Shirts, pants, skirts, and shoes.

_Man, she really didn't care that she was spending his hard-earned money!_ He was grateful he was making more money now, he would have never been able to treat her to all this on his college/part-time job budget!

The spikey-haired man sighed in defeat. It was her birthday, and it wasn't like the petite soul reaper had the opportunity to go shopping _everyday_…

"Hurry it up_ slow poke_!" the petite girl chided as she entered the boutique.

Ichigo growled at her.

An elderly couple walking by holding hands chuckled at the poor youth.

"Your girlfriend is quite excited today. It must be a special day." The old man commented.

"Remember when you used to carry my shopping bags like that my love?" The old woman said to her husband.

Ichigo blushed deeply and wanted to tell them that Rukia was NOT his girlfriend, but they were already gone.

-o-

-o-

-o-

Just a little teaser chapter, but what do you think so far?

If I made just _one _person smile or laugh with this chapter, I feel like I've done a good thing.

Constructive criticism is accepted. Please, if I make a super obvious mistake, let me know, and I will gladly fix it!

THANK YOU TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE READ, FAVORITE(D?), FOLLOWED, AND REVIEWED MY OTHER STORY, THE TRADE.

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH I'M WRITING IN ALL CAPS.

Here is a shout-out and big cyber-cookie to all of the lovely folks who reviewed my last story: kuromi123, Emi, Rayne Destiny, avvrilstar, Ecila, vampirelover, RoXas Obivion Oathkeeper, My Name Is Someone, Culebra del Sol, Merikatori,cbeastly, Mistemptress, Mdizzle181, yagami rin, Hekka, FinalReason, Nhn, ritacovarrubias9, erzashea1, kat, Merci, Rukia Heart, and ceiyn.

I'm living the full time college student/full time working life, but I promise to update next week.

Read, Follow, Favorite, Review.


	2. Family Visit

Here is Chapter 2 (still no lemon yet, I need the story to develop a little more).

Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.

-o-

-o-

-o-

A young woman stood in front of a full-length mirror holding up two articles of clothing. She'd been staring at the same two shirts for over five minutes.

"What do you think? Navy or Pink?" the dark-haired girl asked, turning to look at the frustrated man behind her.

"Ugh… I don't know. Which one _**do you like best**__?_" her companion asked through gritted teeth.

She thought about his words for a moment, bringing her fingers up to her mouth in contemplation.

"Hmm… Can I have _both_ of them?" she said finally.

"Hai, hai." Ichigo sighed, defeated.

_He would buy out the whole damn store if it would just get her to finish!_

-o-

Rukia smirked inwardly as she turned on her heels to walk towards the check-out counter.

_Alright! Maybe she had made him suffer shopping with her enough for __**one day**__…_

_-o-_

Ichigo groaned for the hundredth time that day as he followed behind her.

Looking around, his eyes landed on a small black dress.

"Oi, Rukia." He called out.

She turned back to look at him holding up a black satin mini-dress.

"Did you try this one on?"

Rukia blushed as she shook her head no. "No... That dress was made for girls with a fuller figure then mine." She said truthfully.

She didn't think she had what it takes to pull off a dress like that.

Ichigo shook his head in disbelief. "Don't be an _idiot_. This dress was made for someone like you, it would look awful on some _bimbo_ spilling out of the top of it."

By this time Rukia had walked back to him. She took the dress from his hands to inspect it. "You really think so?"

Ichigo nodded his head. "Plus, it would be perfect for when we go out tonight to celebrate,"

Her violet eyes lit up with happiness at his words.

"Go try it on." He insisted.

Rukia nodded her head and made her way back to the dressing rooms.

"Alright, but if I like it, I won't show you so that it'll be a surprise for tonight!"

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Yea, yea. Whatever."

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia hummed happily as she and Ichigo made their way back to Ichigo's apartment.

Ichigo was carrying all of her bags, except for the bag that contained her new black dress. That bag she had cradled in her hands.

_She was so excited for tonight!_

They reached the apartment around lunchtime. Ichigo collapsed on the couch from exhaustion.

He vowed he would never go shopping with a woman _**ever again**_.

-o-

Rukia couldn't help but laugh at him.

She decided to make Ichigo lunch as a reward for taking her shopping.

Taking out a recipe card she had received from Yuzu, Rukia began making Ichigo's favorite stew.

-o-

Ichigo awoke when the delicious scent of spicy beef stew reached his nose.

Oh how he missed Yuzu's cooking ever since he started living alone!

When he sat up, he was surprised to find himself at his apartment and not at home with his family. He frowned in disappointment until he looked up and saw Rukia cooking away in his kitchen.

She was wearing a chappy-the-rabbit apron (no surprise there).

She was paying careful attention to her pot, and he couldn't help the smile that formed on the side of his face.

_Of course the petite soul reaper would cook with as much determination as she used to battle hollows…_

The carrot-top made his way to the kitchen, sat down in a stool, and watched her as she finished cooking.

When she was done, he got up to help her set out plates and silverware.

-O-

Ichigo couldn't suppress the moan of delight that escaped his throat as he took the first bite.

"This tastes as good as Yuzu's!" he said with joy.

Rukia smiled arrogantly, "Of course it does Ichigo! I got the recipe from her."

Ichigo nodded his head, "Still, this is incredible!"

Rukia crossed her arms over her chest. "I thought it was the least I could do for all you've done for me today."

But Ichigo had already tuned her out as all of his attention was on his food.

As he ate his skillfully prepared lunch, he looked over to Rukia and noticed something.

She had _that look_ on her face again.

_He just knew there was something she wanted to tell him!_

"Is there anything _bothering_ you, Rukia?" he asked in-between mouthfuls.

-o-

Rukia shook her head and smiled at him. "Don't worry about it... I'll tell you later tonight. I promise… And there's some stew on your chin."

Ichigo cleaned his chin with his napkin. He still wasn't satisfied with her answer, but at least he was getting somewhere with her.

-o-

After lunch, they saved the leftovers in the fridge and cleaned up the table. Ichigo washed dishes and Rukia dried them.

Ichigo then sat down to watch TV while Rukia put away all of new purchases before joining him on the couch.

Just as she got comfortable, the hollow alarm went off on her phone.

Ichigo watched as she whipped out her ancient cell phone and quickly tensed.

"Ichigo! There's a hollow!"

Ichigo remained calm as he reached out to pull her back down on to the couch.

"Relax Rukia."

"But-"

"Uyru, Innoe, and Chad promised to take care of the hollows today in honor of your birthday."

"Oh." She said simply.

She had the day off from slaying hollows…

They watched TV for a couple of hours before deciding to get ready.

Both of them left to their separate rooms and separate bathrooms.

-o-

Obviously, Ichigo was done before Rukia.

He looked at the clock. It read 7:45. "Hurry up woman! I wanna leave at 8:00." He said as he finished buttoning his grey button down shirt.

He wore a grey shirt, a black tie, dark black slacks, and black leather shoes.

"Don't get your panties in bunch Ichigo!" came the reply.

"_I do not wear panties!_" he yelled angrily through the closed-door of her room.

"Whatever. Where are we going anyways?"

"I thought we'd go out for dinner and drinks."

"Drinks?" she asked hesitantly.

He raised an eyebrow curiously at her through the closed-door.

"Yea, do you not drink?"

"Well, not really-"

"What?" he asked genuinely surprised.

She was **much** older than him; surely she'd had alcohol before!

"Nii-sama says it's not proper for a lady to drink…"

-o-

Ichigo held in his chortle.

Rukia didn't drink because _her older brother forbade it?_

"Well princess Kuchiki, Byakuka isn't here. And I won't tell him if you won't."

"O-ok Ichigo. And I have something important news to tell you later... It's pretty big." She said as she opened the door.

Ichigo's breath caught in his throat when his eyes landed on the petite woman.

-o-

She was wearing the black dress he'd bought for her earlier.

It had a plunging neckline, revealing a good eye-full of her perky breasts. It tied at the top around her neck like a halter. It went down about her mid-thighs, revealing her long gorgeous legs. Her flawless pale skin was a sharp contrast to the dark dress.

Ichigo could see she wore some makeup; pink lip-gloss, along with some mascara that made her purple eyes look even bigger. She did a small turn for him, and he discovered that the dress was backless; _meaning wasn't wearing a bra..._

He gulped.

Finishing off her look, she wore a pair of rounded-toe, three-inch black stilettos. They made her look taller.

"So?" she asked.

She crossed her arms over her chest; she was expecting a compliment from him.

Ichigo struggled to find his voice as he suppressed a blush and cleared his throat.

"You look-"

But the doorbell ringing interrupted his comment.

Ichigo growled in frustration.

_Now he forgot what he was going to say!_

He looked down to apologize to Rukia, but she was already gone and going to answer the door.

"Who could it be?" she asked as she opened the door.

-o-

"GOOD EVENING ICHIGO AND RUKIA!" Isshin Kurosaki screamed as he burst through the apartment.

Karin and Yuzu followed sheepishly.

Karin was holding some packages and Yuzu was holding a cake.

"What are earth are you guys doing here!?" Ichigo whined. He was both surprised _and_ annoyed.

Isshin charged himself at Ichigo.

The young man easily dodged his father's kick and threw him down the hall.

He then directed Yuzu to the kitchen to set down the cake, and Karin into the living room table to set down the presents.

"SON! Is that anyway to greet your beloved family? You ungrateful first-spawn of mine! What else would we be doing here? We're here to celebrate my third-daughter's birthday!"

Rukia beamed at Isshin's words.

-o-

Ichigo watched as his father pulled out something small and folded from his back pocket.

In a few seconds he had opened it up to reveal a giant memorial poster of Ichigo's mother which he then plastered on one of Ichigo's living room walls.

Everyone else in the room sweat-dropped and wondered how on earth he had managed to fit in his pocket in the first place and still manage to open it up without a single wrinkle in it.

Rukia hugged Karin and Yuzu. They had grown up a lot. They were now as tall as Rukia was with her three-inch heels.

"Thank you, Kurosaki-san." Rukia said happily, bowing to the older man.

"Rukia! My child! Have you forgotten? Call me big-sexy-papa!" he said proudly, holding up a thumbs-up sign to her.

Rukia giggled as she thought back to the times when she had lived in the Kurosaki home as Isshin's 'third-daughter'.

"Hai, Kurosaki-dad." She compromised.

-o-

She yelped in surprise when Isshin grabbed her and the twins. He pulled them all together in a tight hug.

"It feels so wonderful to have my beautiful girls all together again," he declared.

-o-

Ichigo groaned in disgust at the affectionate scene and went to the refrigerator to pull out some refreshments for his family.

'_So much for going out…' _he thought disappointed.

-o-

"Rukia-chan! Smile before you blow out the candle!" Yuzu said excitedly, holding up her digital camera.

They had taken a couple of family shots, and one of just Ichigo and Rukia (at Isshin's insistence of course).

Rukia ginned widely, her cake had a chappy-the-rabbit candle on it.

After the pictures, Rukia blew out the candle and cut the cake.

Yuzu had baked her favorite strawberry cake with chocolate frosting and chopped strawberries in the center.

-o-

Ichigo wanted to be mad at his family for arriving unannounced, but when he saw how _happy_ Rukia seemed, he couldn't be…

"Masaki! This is a wonderful celebration! Look down at all of our children and smile at their joy!" Isshin cried as he embraced his late wife's giant poster.

A vein in Ichigo's forehead popped.

-o-

After cake, the family cleaned up the area and all sat back down together.

"Ok! Time for presents!" Karin cheered.

"Open mine first!" Yuzu said.

Rukia tore into the pink packaging with enthusiasm and squealed in delight when she pulled out a pink chappy-the-rabbit sweatshirt with pink bunny ears attached to the hood.

Ichigo groaned. _Oh great. Just what she needed... More chappy-the-rabbit merchandise…_

"Oh Yuzu! I love it! Look Ichigo! I can wear it tonight!"

"_Absolutely not! I am not going out in public with you wearing that- that thing!"_

Rukia pouted in sadness as Yuzu consoled her.

"Ichi's become so mean since he grew up!" Yuzu said.

The soul reaper than happily opened Karin's green wrapped package next.

Her reaction was very similar to when she opened up Yuzu's present. She pulled out a set of pajamas: a gray tank top with a green ambassador seaweed in the center, and small set of green boys shorts with 'seaweed ambassador' written in grey across the butt.

"Karin! I can't wait to put them on!"

Ichigo resisted the urge to smack his head against the wall.

At least it was better than last year when his sisters had given her stupid giant posters of her favorite characters. Rukia had tried to convince him for _weeks_ to let her post them in the middle of the living room walls and kitchen, before he finally convinced her to post them up in her room.

He was broken out of his thoughts when Karin nudged his ribs with her elbow.

"I got the skimpiest set just for you Ichi," She whispered to her older brother mischievously before shooting up a thumbs-up sign at him.

Ichigo spit out the soda in his mouth and blushed deeply at the comment.

The rest of his family and Rukia looked up at him curiously.

He snapped at them and they all shrugged and went back to their conversations.

The last present was from Ichigo's father.

-o-

Rukia was opening it joyfully while Ichigo looked on cautiously.

His dad was so unpredictable; there could be anything in that box!

Rukia looked down and gasped in surprise.

-o-

Ichigo clenched his eyes closed, expecting the worst.

_What could it be? _

Whatever it was, it couldn't be worse than last Christmas… Isshin had bought her a t-shirt that said 'The Future Mother Of Isshin Kurosaki's Grandchildren'.

'_Could it be worse?' _he thought, panicking.

-o-

"This, this is so beautiful…" she said softly.

-o-

Ichigo opened up an eye curiously to see Rukia pulling out a long black sheer sequenced shawl.

The young female soul reaper took it out of the box and inspected it closely.

"Wow." Yuzu and Karin said together.

"Do you like it Rukia?" Isshin asked hopefully.

Rukia slipped it on over her shoulders and nodded her head.

She gave the elder Kurosaki a dazzling smile.

"I love it Kurosaki-dad." She said truthfully.

-o-

Ichigo's heart stopped beating at the look of her beautiful white smile.

"It belonged to my wonderful Masaki," Isshin said, his face calm and his tone serious, but his eyes dancing with happiness.

"It- it was Ichigo's mothers?" Rukia repeated, clutching the shawl around her shoulders.

"Hai... She would want you to have it. It looks as beautiful on you as it did on her." He finished, turning back to gaze at the poster of his deceased wife.

"Then I shall cherish it all the more!" Rukia said, determined.

The shawl seemed precious to her now…

-o-

Karin and Yuzu smiled at Rukia before turning to look at Ichigo. He was staring at Rukia, but his brown eyes seemed lost…

Karin got up and stretched her arms over her head.

"Well, I think it's time we leave this two clueless lovebirds and head back home, whata' say Yuzu?"

Yuzu jumped up. "I agree! The night is still young and they had plans to go out! Besides, you have that soccer tournament tomorrow Karin, and we all need to get our rest. Dad and I will be cheer for you from the sidelines the entire time!"

Karin groaned, "I know, but I wish you wouldn't."

Isshin took down his poster of Masaki and folded it back up neatly. Folded properly, the poster became a tiny wallet sized picture of Masaki, which Isshin then placed inside of his walled, next to the pictures of all of his children, including one of Rukia.

Ichigo and Rukia said goodbye to the family.

-o-

Ichigo was glad they were finally gone.

He looked over at the clock, it read 10:30.

His eyes looked over to soul reaper, who was busy throwing away trash and putting away her new presents.

"Come on, Rukia, we better get going."

"You still wanna go out?" she asked, surprised.

"Of course I do, why wouldn't I?"

"I thought your family's visit would have worn you out." She said with a grin.

Ichigo huffed at her.

"Don't be ridiculous. Let's go."

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

Chapter 2! Yay!

Thank you to everyone for your support! You guys are _the_** BEST**.

Read, Review, Favorite, Follow.

avvrilstar: My first reviewer! * throws confetti * You get the gold star! _Education…_ is more important than Ichiruki? :O _what? _Impossible! * covers ears with hands * la-la-la lol

missstampede: good! good! thank you. hehe ^_^

Player Zero: I hope this chapter didn't disappoint!

hinataellis: thank you much! :3

yagami rin: I also like the idea of an older-berry! :D It's not something that's done a lot… but it intrigues meh!

kuromi123: tehehe, I blush! (~^_^)~

hunterofcomedy: thank you! Let me know what you think! :)


	3. Drinks and Confessions

Sooooo next week is gonna be killer busy for me, so I decided to go ahead a post an extra chapter today!

The lemon is **so** close after this chapter!

Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia Kuchiki wrapped herself tighter around her new black shawl. She and Ichigo walked to a little restaurant near his apartment building.

When they arrived there, the hostess sat them in a small booth near the back.

-o-

The cozy restaurant was dimly lit. The only source of light Rukia and Ichigo had was a small scent-less candle placed in-between them as they sat across from each other.

Jazz music played softly, creating a relaxed, almost romantic ambiance.

Their waiter walked over to ask them what they wished to order.

"I'll have the house beer, and the lady will have a strawberry daiquiri." Ichigo said confidently, glaring at the waiter when he noticed the way he was ogling his good-looking petite companion.

The waiter gulped when he noticed Ichigo's death glare, and made a mental note to refrain from looking at Rukia the rest of the night.

"What's a strawberry daiquiri?" Rukia asked, oblivious.

"You'll like it." was Ichigo's only response.

Rukia nodded her head.

She trusted Ichigo's judgment.

They made comfortable small talk until their drinks arrived.

As Ichigo had said, she loved her strawberry daiquiri. She had finished it before Ichigo was even half way done with his first beer.

So the substitute soul-reaper ordered her another one.

-o-

"Woah there Kuchiki, pace yourself. If you drink too fast, It'll go straight to your head." He lectured as he watched her down the second one.

Ichigo scolded her, but he was smiling.

It was Rukia's birthday. She could do whatever she wanted.

-o-

This time _she_ ordered a third drink.

Rukia grinned happily as the sweet alcohol slid down her throat.

_It was so good!_

"Ichi-go, there's some news I have to tell you about, it's pretty big." Rukia began. Her face sobered momentarily.

He nodded his head to show her he was listening.

"It's something very important that's happened to me-"

"What is it Rukia?" he asked curiously.

"Well… For starters, my Byakuya-sama has named me his heir,"

The substitute soul-reaper was not surprised.

"That makes sense… He's doesn't have any children or any other siblings."

Rukia nodded her head and continued. "Hai… He's just very recently made it _official_... As such, he believes that I've finally reached a _certain age_ as a young woman-"

Ichigo rolled his eyes. _Rukia? Young? **Really?**_

"-where I should settle down…"

-o-

Ichigo felt his mouth go dry as she continued speaking.

"My older brother has started looking into promising suitors for me-"

Ichigo put down his beer as he listened to her.

Rukia's words began to slowly sink in.

_Suitors?_

"I'm-I'm going to get married, Ichigo."

-o-

Rukia's words rang in his ears.

"_Married?"_ Ichigo repeated. "Like, to a man?"

She giggled at his reaction. "Hai, you fool! I'm not like Chizuru!" she joked, recalling the flirtatious lesbian from Ichigo's high school.

"And you're _ok_ with an arranged marriage?"

This time Rukia looked down at her strawberry drink. She was silent for a moment before speaking again.

"You see, in the Soul Society, arranged marriages among the noble class are very common…"

"That's not what I asked you… I asked you if you were _**ok**_ with it?"

Rukia still couldn't look up to face him. She simply nodded her head.

-o-

Ichigo was in complete disbelief.

"What kind of suitors? Do you know any of these men?"

Rukia shook her head, "Most of them come from high-ranking families in the soul society, and many are non-soul reapers... I haven't met any of them yet. As soon as brother picks through and eliminates candidates based on qualifications, meetings between the families of the suitors and my family will be arranged before one is selected."

"Will you be selecting your husband?"

"No, that honor belongs to my nii-sama and the elders of the Kuchiki family."

Ichigo shook his head, "I- I can't believe you're acting so calm about this whole thing…"

Rukia shrugged her shoulders.

"I've accepted it. The Kuchiki clan has been very good to me… I don't have the right to refuse. Besides… every woman dreams of settling down one day and having, _you know_, children." She said, a blush rising to her cheeks at the thought of having a family.

"Rukia, this is your **future** we're talking about… What if you don't like this guy? What if he's old, or fat, or ugly?"

Rukia's nose scrunched up in disgust. Ichigo was voicing some of the very concerns she had herself.

"I don't think nii-sama would do that to me-"

"What about _love_ Rukia? What if you don't love this guy?"

"I'm sure I can grow to _care_ for him… He'll be my husband after all… I've never been in love Ichigo… The closest thing I've ever felt to it, were my feelings for Lieutenant Shiba, but that was just platonic… A childish infatuation to a man I could never have." She admitted.

Ichigo became silent at the mention of the dead former Squad Thirteen lieutenant, the man whom he so strongly resembled… _his cousin. _

Shaking his head, the orange-haired man just couldn't accept this reality yet.

"Rukia, what if this guy's a lousy kisser, or no good in bed?!"

"**Ichigo**!" Rukia hissed. He was starting to get loud in the quiet restaurant.

Ichigo still couldn't calm down though. He clutched the drink in his hand tighter as he listened to her.

"I'm not exactly an expert kisser either, and I would have no idea how to rate a guy 'in bed', so that doesn't really matter." She said. Ichigo was starting to freak her out with all of his comments.

"You mean, you're still a virgin-"

Rukia cut off his comment by slamming her hands down on the table.

"Of course I am! What kind of woman do you think I am? I'm not some harlot of loose morals! It's my duty as the princess of the Kuchiki clan to stay pure for my intended husband." She said as a matter-of-factly.

Ichigo was speechless as he looked at the petite soul reaper sitting across from him.

The waiter brought them another round of drinks and Rukia downed hers greedily.

"But, I mean, you've kissed _other_ guys before, right?"

Rukia's blush spread down her neck, to her cleavage, and all the way down to her stomach.

Honestly, the questions he asked!

He knew her too well... There was no use trying to lie to the substitute soul reaper.

"Not exactly… The only man I've ever kissed _is_ _you_." She confessed.

-o-

Ichigo rubbed the back of neck in embarrassment as he recalled the kiss they had shared five years earlier…

It had happened one night, right around the time Ichigo had entered Karakura University.

-o-

**Flashback.**

The duo had battled against a large group of dangerous hollows. During the fight, they'd been separated by the hollows and each been tricked into thinking the other had died. When they finally defeated the hollows and found each other, they had been so happy and relieved to find that their partner was still alive that they had, well… kissed.

It had been a completely spur-of-the-moment, spontaneous, knock-your-socks-off, kiss. They hadn't pursued any type of romantic relationship after it happened.

In fact, they had both been so embarrassed by the incident that they hadn't spoken about it since…

**End Flashback.**

-o-

To be honest, Ichigo hadn't been involved romantically with anyone, well… ever.

Ever since he had become a substitute soul reaper at the tender age of 15, he had been too busy. Being a part-time superhero, saving the world, and keeping up his grades in school was _too _difficult.

In college, he had attempted to date (according to his friends: Uyru, Chad, Keigo, and Mizuro, women who all looked suspiciously like Rukia Kuchiki), but all them had either been just awkward first dates, or straight up bad first dates that were thankfully interrupted by hollows. He never made a connection with any of those girls, and nothing had ever turned into anything serious.

-o-

Rukia shifted in her seat. Ichigo's silence unnerved her.

She finished her 5th strawberry daiquiri of the night and sighed.

Why was this so difficult?

Why couldn't Ichigo just be a normal friend for once and be glad for her?

This would all be easier for her to bear if he could just be happy for her.

But he wasn't like any of her other friends. And he was far from normal. He was different. He was Ichigo Kurosaki.

"So what'll happen to us?" he asked softly.

-o-

Rukia looked up at him in shock.

He blushed. "To- to our friendship, I mean." He added quickly.

Rukia's shock turned into a smile. "Nothing Ichigo, nothing will change. You'll always be my best friend, my partner. No matter what, that bond cannot be broken." She reassured confidently.

"I don't believe that." He said with a scowl.

Rukia's eye twitched, was he doubting her words?

"What if your new husband doesn't want you fighting hollows anymore?"

Rukia shook her head, "I'm a soul reaper first-"

"Think about it Rukia. This guy could convince Byakuya that fighting hollows is too dangerous for you."

The petite soul reaper frowned as her 6th drink arrived.

"And let's say hypothetically he **does** allow you to keep fighting hollows. He's sure as hell not going to allow you to come back to the world of the living-"

"I'm getting a husband, not a jailer! I'm sure he'll understand that I have friends and people I care about deeply here."

"After you get married, I don't think you expect him to allow you to say with me anymore do you?"

"What? Why wouldn't I?"

"Oh yea, like this guy would allow his _beautiful_ wife to stay under the same roof as the bachelor-substitute-soul-reaper savior of the Soul Society,"

Rukia turned her attention back to her drink.

"You're thinking too much about this way too much Ichigo… Let's cross that bridge when we get there, shall we? There's still plenty of time to sort out details... I'll consult with my brother and ask him for advice about this later this week…"

Ichigo sighed and ran his hand through his orange-colored hair.

"You're right. I'm sorry… This was just… unexpected is all."

Rukia shrugged. "I told you I had _big news_, didn't I?"

Ichigo gave her a small smile as he brought his cold beer up to her drink for a toast.

"Hai. Let's drop the subject for now, alright? It's still your birthday for about two more minutes... Cheers." he said.

"Cheers."

-o-

Once they left the restaurant to go home, Rukia was having a hard time walking straight.

Ichigo laughed as he watched her.

Her older brother would _murder_ him if he could see how intoxicated he had allowed the petite soul reaper to become.

It was so unusual to the graceful Rukia moving about so clumsily.

She looked like a newborn fawn.

Her high heel shoes didn't help any, and soon enough she miscalculated a step and she fell forward with a yell.

However, she never felt herself touch the ground.

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

Whoo! Oh my gosh-ness, two chapters in one day? Is it Christmas in September? ;) Lol

Thoughts? Questions?

I'll update again in two weeks, until then:

Read, Review, Favorite, Follow.


	4. Confessions and Strawberries

I'm baaacckkk!

I took 3 tests this week, and I'm celebrating (the fact that I'm done) by posting another chapter!

Why? Because **I love you**, _that's why_.

I know the characters are somewhat OOC, but I think it works well with the story...

There will be a **lemon** in this chapter! You have been warned!

Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

Looking up, Rukia saw Ichigo holding her.

She wanted to scold him (despite the fact he had saved her from falling), but before she could react, he had picked her up off the ground.

"Ichi-go! What do you think you're doing? _Fool_!" she protested.

He was carrying her bridal-style.

"Isn't it obvious _midget_? We'll never get home at your pace." He explained calmly.

Rukia sighed and nodded her head.

For once, he was right.

Placing her head against his chest, she allowed herself to fall asleep in protective arms.

-o-

Soon, they were back at the apartment.

He kept his hold on her, but freed one of his hands to pull out his keys and open up the apartment door.

Once they were inside, he locked the door behind them.

Rukia stirred in his arms at the sound of unlocking doors.

She looked around tiredly and smiled when she noticed they were home. She sighed happily and snuggled closer to his chest.

"Thank you. Today was the best, I mean it." She said softly.

The orange-haired man looked down to speak to her, but he noticed that she had fallen asleep.

Ichigo smiled as he slipped off his shoes.

He walked down the hall and to his bedroom.

-o-

The top blinds in his room were open, letting the moonlight pour in and illuminate them.

Ichigo placed Rukia gently on his bed.

He held in a chuckle as he watched her curl herself up in a tight ball on his large bed.

-o-

Rukia felt so peaceful; completely surrounded by Ichigo's calming, masculine scent.

-o-

Ichigo shook his head in amusement. It didn't look like she would be waking up anytime soon… It also seemed she would be sleeping on his bed.

Being a **gentleman**, he decided he would grab his pajamas and go sleep in _her _room for the night.

Turning back to the dozing woman, he peeled off her black heels.

She didn't stir.

Encouraged, he leaned over her to attempt to remove her black shawl so he could cover her properly with a blanket.

Rukia clutched the shawl tighter in her sleep, refusing to let it go.

Ichigo leaned down further to slip it off her shoulders and pry it from her fingers.

He tried his best to ignore the fact he was merely inches away from her face…

-o-

In her sleep, Rukia sensed his presence.

Still dreaming, she reached up to kiss him.

-o-

Ichigo stiffened.

He was completely unprepared for the contact of her soft lips against his.

He pulled away from her.

_She was asleep! She didn't know what she was doing!_

At least, that's what he thought… Until, he heard her call out to him by name.

"_Ichi-go_," she whispered in her sleep.

-o-

That little kiss, that single action awakened something within him.

Reaching forward, he placed a kissed her mouth.

The action woke Rukia.

She gasped in realization.

-o-

The lieutenant soul-reaper sat up abruptly.

"I uhh, better get back to my room-" she stuttered.

As soon as she stood to stand, Ichigo reached out to grab a hold of her arm.

"_I don't want you to go_," he said.

Rukia laughed nervously.

"I can't sleep here _baka_,"

"You don't understand… I don't want to go _back to the Soul Society_, I don't want you to get married."

The woman soul-reaper felt her stomach sink and her heart flutter at the same time.

She shook her head in protest, "Ichigo, I already explained the situation to you… I _don't_ have a choice,"

"Bullshit! You can tell the Kuchiki-clan to go fuck themselves-"

"It's not that **easy**… You don't know what you're saying Ichigo,"

"The hell I don't, I'm _saying_ that you could choose to stay **here**... _with me._"

-o-

Rukia felt her head spin.

"T-that's not possible and you know it! Don't say things like that,"

"Don't say what Rukia? That I want you to stay? That I _don't_ want you to be with someone else? That I care about you-"

"Stop it! Can't we _forget about this_ and go on like normal? The way we've always been before?"

"No, we can't! We can't because, _because_ I'm in love with you, Rukia Kuchiki."

"No Ichigo! No you don't! No, y-you can't! Don't forget, you're a human and… I'm, I-I'm _dead_…"

He reached out to hold her by the shoulders.

"_I don't care!_" he yelled at her.

Rukia slapped his hands away.

"But _I do_. You deserve to live a _normal_ life. You **belong** in the world of the living… You will find someone else, and you will be happy… Someday you will have children, and you will age,"

This time Ichigo reached out to grab a hold her hands in his. His large hands engulfed hers.

"_I don't want anyone that's not you_,"

He was staring deep into her violet orbs.

"Stop it!" Rukia said desperately.

Ichigo brought her small hands up to his chest. She could feel his fast heartbeat beneath her fingertips.

Rukia stared at his face... There was a look of pure love in his chocolate eyes.

"P-please Ichigo, don't do this," she begged him.

-o-

Ichigo could hear the sound of her heart breaking; he could feel the pain in her voice as she spoke.

It only **proved** to him that she loved him as much as he loved her, that she needed him as much as he needed her.

His hands released hers before reaching up to cup her face.

"_No_," Rukia half-whispered as Ichigo kissed her.

-o-

Rukia melted into the kiss.

Ichigo nibbled on her bottom lip, causing Rukia to gasp.

He used that opportunity to slip his tongue inside her mouth.

His hands traveled down to wrap around her waist to pull her closer to him.

The substitute soul-reaper suddenly growled at the thought of somebody _else_ kissing those supple lips.

The simple thought that someday another man would have her, would kiss her, and make love to her, infuriated him to his core.

He deepened the kiss, and Rukia thought she would go mad with passion.

-o-

As Ichigo's hands explored her body, he came across her Gokon Tekko (spirit glove). Rukia had hidden the small red glove with the skull printed on it, on her body in case of an emergency.

Meanwhile, Rukia was too distracted kissing him to notice he'd found it.

She also didn't sense when he slipped the glove on his hand.

He grinned devilishly.

In an instant, Rukia felt herself being pushed out her own body.

-o-

Rukia's eyebrows scrunched in confusion. She suddenly realized she was in her soul reaper form.

Before she had time to question him about it, she noticed Ichigo had also transformed himself using the Gokon Tekko.

Without a single word, Ichigo guided her down in the bed with him.

He held her closely, and he kissed her.

Her gigai form lay on the floor next to his human body, forgotten...

-o-

His chocolate orbs stared passionately into her surprised purple ones.

His large hands were working quickly to untie the white obi from the front of her uniform.

"Stop this Ichigo, w-we can't do this!" she tried to reason, cursing at her body's natural reaction to his charm.

Ichigo ignored her and kissed her neck, nipping on the sweet tasting skin.

Rukia moaned out softly as he lowered his body to hers and pressed his erection up against her lower belly.

He used her moan to his advantage as he thrust his tongue inside her mouth greedily. There, his tongue danced with hers until she finally submitted and gave him dominance as he took control of her lips.

The lingering taste of strawberry liquor in her mouth shattered any shred of self-control Ichigo had left.

-o-

*** LEMON ***

Rukia felt something hot pool between her legs at his touch.

She whined pathetically as Ichigo kneaded her small breast roughly through her robes.

Her nipples grew hard as he played with her breasts through all the layers of her clothing.

-o-

Every little cry Rukia made drove him mad with lust.

He wanted to hear more! No, he _needed_ to hear more.

Her small hands came up to his chest shakily as he his continued to kiss her.

He suppressed his own groan when he felt her delicate fingers running down his chiseled chest.

_He loved every second of it._ He wanted her to touch him, he wanted her to feel and return his hunger towards her.

Sitting up, he quickly discarded his jacket, inner-shirt, and his pants.

It gave Rukia a better eye at the erection trapped inside of his tight-fitting boxers.

The blush returned to Rukia's face and spread down her body, _it _looked much more menacingly through the boxers…

Ichigo then parted _her_ jacket and _her_ shirt. He slipped the garments off her shoulders. Her black uniform pants met a similar fate. The only things she had left on her body were the white bandages around her chest, and a pair of cotton panties...

-o-

Instead of taking the time to slowly unravel the white bandages around her chest, he simply tore through them, unwrapping her like a child opening up a Christmas present on Christmas Day.

The flush on his body rose to his face as he watched her perfect breasts spring forward, the perky mounds coming to life after being suffocated beneath the uncomfortable bandages.

-o-

Rukia froze, her hands at her sides, and she clenched her eyes closed under Ichigo's lustful gaze.

Her heart was racing; she had never been in such an intimate situation with a man before...

Rukia bit her bottom lip before crying out in pleasure as Ichigo's hands cupped her breasts.

The grip of his calloused hands was firm, yet gentle. He experimented with both breasts before he took a pink nipple into his mouth.

-o-

Ichigo marveled at how perfectly Rukia's breasts fit in his hands.

They were so round, so perky, so beautiful, and most of all, _his_.

He placed his lips around her nipple and suckled it like newborn babe. He kneaded the neglected breast roughly like dough.

He pinched the nipple between his fingers, making her cry out again, before he switched sides.

-o-

Rukia was losing her mind under all the pleasure!

She continued to mewl as Ichigo trailed his kisses further south before stopping between her legs.

Her legs were clenched together tightly, and her panties shielded her womanhood.

-o-

The orange-haired man scoffed as he looked at her.

"_Figures," _he mumbled to himself.

Rukia growled at him before reaching down to cover her crotch-area with both hands.

The male clicked his lips in displeasure when she hid herself from his view.

"Just what is_ that_ supposed to mean?" she questioned, incredibly insulted.

_Was there something wrong with her? Was there something different about her that she didn't know about?_

-o-

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he pried her hands off her lady-parts.

"I was talking about _that_," he said, pointing to the small long-eared animal printed on the front of her panties.

"So?" she asked, still confused.

"_Do you __**really**__ have to have Chappy's face on your underwear?_"

"Wha? _Why you-_" she said angrily through gritted teeth.

-o-

Ichigo gulped as he sensed her anger.

Trying to defuse the situation, he quickly distracted her by placing kisses on the tops of her thighs.

Rukia continued to glare at him, but soon, her anger began to fade.

-o-

Ichigo used his hands to encourage her to part her legs for him, which she did so gradually.

Her sweet scent filled his nostrils, and they flared in desire.

His chocolate eyes glazed with over with want when he discovered that her panties were already soaking wet with her juices.

His used one hand to pull her underwear to the side, and used his other hand to spread her pink folds and look inside her womanhood.

Before Rukia could protest, he dipped his head forward for an experimental lick; surprised by the way she almost jumped off the bed.

He grinned at her reaction and used his arms to put his weight her body to hold her down.

Looking straight into her cerulean eyes, he slowly leaned his head forward to devour her like a starving man.

-o-

The woman beneath him withered in pleasure.

She never imagined feeling so good in her entire life!

His mouth was pleasuring the little bundle of nerves of her clitoris, and his long fingers had snaked their way inside of her. The digits were currently stretching her tight hole, and he was adding more fingers one by one.

Rukia felt something wonderful forming inside of her, something incredible! Ichigo was dangling her over the edge of it… _She was so close!_

She brought her hands up to muffle her cries as she clenched her eyes closed.

-o-

Ichigo sensed her approaching orgasm as he continued to suck her dry.

Just as she was about to find release, Ichigo pulled away from her.

-o-

All at once, the young woman came crashing back down to earth.

She opened her purple eyes to see Ichigo grinning at her arrogantly.

She suppressed the tears of frustration that threatened to stream down her face.

_How dare he?! _

As Ichigo came up to kiss her lips in a romantic gesture, Rukia couldn't stop herself from **slapping him** across the face, _hard_.

-o-

Ichigo brought a hand up to his abused cheek. He rubbed it before growling down at the petite woman in front of him.

_Did she really just slap him? In the middle of foreplay?_

He used one of his hands to catch both of her wrists. He brought them up above her head.

She huffed and fought against him. Ichigo used his other hand to grab a hold of her chin and keep her face still as he brought his lips down against her in a bruising kiss.

-o-

Rukia gasped, she could taste herself in his mouth. She moaned and stopped struggling against him.

Ichigo pulled away from her to glare at her once more.

"Don't ever hit me like that in the middle of sex, got it?" he said sternly, scolding her.

The lieutenant could do nothing but nod her head beneath him.

Ichigo kept her arms pinned above her head with one hand, and let the other roam down her body slowly, making her whimper under his touch as he pressed his fingers inside her sopping pussy.

"_Good_… The reason I pulled away is because I wanted your first orgasm to be when I'm inside you, feeling you from the inside, and _watching_ the faces you make,"

Rukia whimpered as she felt him tear away her panties, leaving her completely naked under his lustful eyes. He somehow kept her wrists pinned and her legs parted as he slipped off his own boxers.

-o-

Her amethyst eyes opened wide in alarm as she stared at his newly freed erection.

Were all men like this, or was Ichigo the exception?

'_That thing could break me in two!' _she thought with a panic.

The head of it was glistening, dripping with pre-cum.

He gripped one of her hips as he positioned himself at her wet opening. He rubbed himself against her, making her moan.

Rukia shook her head no as she stared at the large appendage, "I-it'll never fit, it's too _thick_!"

Ichigo chuckled at her concern. She was saying one thing, but her legs were saying another as they spread wider for him.

He slipped the tip of his shaft inside her slowly until he reached her barrier.

Rukia cried out against him, her back arching as she felt him entering her.

His other hand finally released her wrists. He quickly brought it down to clutch her other hip, groaning.

-o-

"Do y-you want me to stop, Rukia?" he asked seriously, fully prepared to pull away from her if that was what she chose.

The petite woman was clenching her eyes closed and breathing heavily.

"I-if you stop now,_ I'll kill you,_" she threatened.

Ichigo smirked as he thrust his hips forward, entering into her swiftly and breaking her hymen.

-o-

_It hurt! _

Rukia's hands came up to wrap around his shoulders.

She felt tears streaming down her eyes at the pain.

Ichigo was filling her to the brim.

_He was inside her…_

-o-

Ichigo groaned in pleasure.

_Rukia was so tight…_

Ichigo bit his lip as he restrained from moving, trying to give her time to adjust his width and size.

He looked down at her apologetically as he kissed away her tears before capturing her lips with his own.

He hoped to distract her mind from the pain.

-o-

Minutes later, Rukia moaned.

She could feel Ichigo's cock twitching inside her.

Slowly, he started to thrust against her.

He was pulling out, and then back in, moving inside her at steady rhythm.

She cried out in pleasure with every thrust he made, her nails raking down his back as he picked up his speed.

He was going all the way in inside her.

Rukia swore she could feel him in her stomach, all the way in her core. He dove himself into her, deeper and deeper.

Her body felt like it was on fire.

The pain was beginning to fade completely.

After several more minutes, she began to love it.

She loved the feeling of Ichigo being inside her.

"More! Please, m-more!" she begged.

She was so close to her release.

-o-

Ichigo grunted in ecstasy as he watched the expressions on Rukia's face.

Her body felt incredible.

He knew he couldn't last too much longer…

The feeling of being connected with her was better than he had ever dreamed.

His large calloused hands reached out for her smaller ones. He intertwined his long fingers with hers as he thrust faster inside her.

Rukia's back arched deeper at his increased speed.

Looking up at his brown eyes, they seemed almost gold with lust.

She smiled weakly at him, before she felt her muscles contracting and tightening around his shaft.

"Ichi-go!" she cried out in pleasure. She clenched her eyes closed as she rode out her orgasm, feeling herself cum around Ichigo's cock.

-o-

Ichigo hissed as her walls squeezed around him, her small muscles milking him dry as he released his own orgasm inside her with a loud howl, spilling his seed inside her.

Shakily, he pulled himself out of her before collapsing beside her. Wrapping his arms around her he and pulled her close against his body. Soon, he felt exhaustion and sleep overcome him.

They fell asleep in each other's arms.

*** END LEMON ***

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia awoke the next morning a few hours before dawn.

She felt an unfamiliar weight on top of her...

Yawning, she looked down to see the top of Ichigo's very orange hair.

She suppressed the urge to scream as she realized the weight she felt was Ichigo, who was sleeping _very_ pleasantly against her _very_ naked chest.

She started to remember what had happened the night before…

Using her god-like speed, she quickly removed herself from underneath him and sat up in bed.

Her lover was sleeping so profoundly he didn't notice her absence. He just smiled wider in his sleep.

-o-

Rukia was taken back by the serene look on his face.

In all the time she had known him, she had never seen him so peaceful, or so happy before.

He was practically oozing a happy aura, even in his sleep. _It looked like he was glowing!_

It made her wonder if the reason Ichigo was so uptight and scowling all the time was because of his lack of sex... The lieutenant soul-reaper couldn't help the small smirk that appeared on her lips at the thought.

Getting up and out of bed, Rukia hissed in discomfort. _She was so sore! _She cringed as she began to assess the situation in her mind.

_How could she have allowed this to happen?_

Gathering up the remnants of her clothes, she quickly got inside of her gigai and fled the substitute soul reaper's room.

-o-

Rukia cleaned herself up and dressed in clean clothing.

But… What was she going to do now?

_She had just ruined her family's honor!_ What would her brother do when he found out?

She didn't even want to think about the consequences this could mean for Ichigo…

Ichigo… Her best friend, her partner… The man she loved…

Rukia laughed to herself. _She loved him. _

She was really in love with Ichigo Kurosaki. She suddenly realized she _had been_ for years.

It was a wonderful revelation, but at the same time it crushed her because as a result of their union, they could never be together again...

So Rukia decided not to think about it…pushing all her thoughts away she quickly grabbed a couple of suitcases and began to pack her things.

She packed away all traces of her in the world of the living.

-o-

DUN DUN DUN! CLIFFHANGER!

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Thank you to all of my lovely reviewers and readers, you guys are the BEST!

missstampede: Thank you for your two reviews! I'm glad you enjoyed the chapters! P.S. I went back and fixed the 'Kuchiki' mistake! Thanks again!

hunterofcomedy: Hehe, I totally did not realize **how much** I made Ichigo and Rukia blush until you pointed it out… Oops! Also, I promise to finish this story! :D I think the next chapter may be the conclusion…

avvrilstar: * catches kiss * lol Thank you for reviewing each chapter! Now, I must know, did Isshin (a.k.a. Big-sexy-papa) give you nightmares? P.S. He _will _make another small appearance next chapter!

HatakeHinata: Ichigo is sooo jelly and he doesn't even know it! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Guest: I updated a little earlier than I said! Be proud of me! Lol Also, you can **bet** that Ichigo will give Byakuya a piece of his mind next chapter! * wink, wink, hint, hint * Also, ICHIGO CONFESSED HIS LOVE! Yay! Then they had semi-drunk sex, oops (does that count as drunk sex?)… Bwahahaha I love your scenario! I had something _else_ in mind, but I may be willing do it in exchange for your undying allegiance…. Lol

Erzatscarlett: I WANT TO PUT YOU IN MY POCKET AND LOVE YOU FOREVER (is that weird?). Thank you for your review! ^_^

Xsamxp: Thank you darling! I'm very happy you liked my portrayal of Ichigo and Rukia! Let me know what you thought of this chapter!

Read, Favorite, Review, Follow.

~Lisa


	5. The Last Chapter

Contrary to my dreams, Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo!

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia Kuchiki looked around; the small apartment room seemed so _bleak_ and _depressing_ without all of her possessions in it.

Now it was just like a normal guest room.

She placed the small chappy-the-rabbit plush toy Ichigo had given to her on the bed, along with a hastily written goodbye letter.

Ichigo would be awake in a few hours… She knew she wouldn't be able to face him… _Let alone say goodbye…_

In her head, she convinced herself this would be for the best.

She smiled sadly. Fighting off tears, she picked up her suitcases and left for the Soul Society.

-o-

-o-

-o-

Ichigo woke up around 9:30.

He had the biggest smile on his face.

He couldn't believe he fallen asleep with his arms around Rukia!

However, as he sat up in bed, he realized he was alone…

Scowling, he wondered if maybe he had just dreamed the whole thing.

'_Some hell of dream…' _he thought to himself. But when he looked down, the fact that he was still **butt naked** convinced him otherwise.

When he called out to the petite soul-reaper by name, he found that the apartment appeared to be as eerily empty as his bed.

Grumbling, he put on a pair of boxers as he called out his lover's name again.

When he didn't get a response, he headed out to check the bathroom… then the kitchen… and then the living room.

But Rukia was gone.

Cursing, he looked towards Rukia's room, and his brow lifted in curiosity as he saw that the door was slightly open.

It had been closed the night before, he was sure of it.

-o-

Stepping inside, he was not prepared to see the room so bare.

Her posters were gone, her plushies, her decor, her books. There were no traces of the girl anywhere in the room, and horror set in for Ichigo as he looked inside of the closet and found that all of her clothes were gone too.

His fist began to shake with anger... He felt hurt and confused.

_She was gone_. Rukia had left him.

After several minutes, he looked down at the bed and saw the small chappy-plushy he had gifted her the day before, along with a note.

-o-

When he opened it up, he was surprised by the lack of silly drawings and illustrations in her message.

_Ichigo,_

_Forgive me._

_I must atone for breaking my clan's rules. As a result, I fear I won't ever be able to see you again. Still, I realize now how much I truly love you. Being with you was wonderful; I will cherish that memory to the end of my days. I've made my choice. Do not attempt to come after me. _

_~Rukia Kuchiki_

-o-

Ichigo cursed as he crumpled up the farewell letter and threw it across the room.

That stupid girl had abandoned him.

He suddenly chuckled.

Rukia thought she would never see him again? After he told her he loved her? After the intimacy they shared? After she confessed her love?

She was crazy… _And wrong_.

He would just have to go get her.

And bring her back.

No matter what.

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia told Byakuya what had happened as soon as she had returned from the world of the living.

At first the noble had been shocked speechless…

Then, he ordered her to go to her room and wait for his instructions.

-o-

The captain called on a faithful family doctor to make a house visit.

The elderly woman had served the Kuchiki clan for years and could be trusted.

He asked the female doctor to examine Rukia to make sure she was telling the truth, and to make sure she wasn't pregnant...

Once the checkup was conducted, he and the doctor spoke.

-o-

Byakuya Kuchiki called his younger sister back to his study.

Rukia lay with her head bowed before her older brother.

_She felt ashamed. _The exam the doctor had preformed had been painful, and embarrassing... She supposed that was part of the punishment for what she had done.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Rukia. How could you have_ given yourself_ to such a pathetic human?" Byakuya said calmly.

Rukia bit her tongue.

_Ichigo was not pathetic!_ She had no forgiveness for sullying the Kuchiki name, but there was also no need to involve Ichigo any further! She couldn't stand to listen to Byakuya **insult** him...

"I want you to keep quiet about what happened. Speak of it to no one. As far as anyone knows, it never happened, and our family's honor will remain intact."

Rukia replied, "Hai" in understanding.

"I am also banning you from going back to the world of the living. You are never to see him again."

"But brother-" she sat up to face her brother.

Her brother interjected, "I hope you understand you made a foolish decision. Luckily, that bastard didn't _impregnate_ you. You can still be engaged and married soon enough,"

Byakuya rose to his feet.

"-That is as long as no one must ever know the truth... For who would ever want to wed a _dishonored_ woman?"

Byakuya's words stung her. She felt as though she had been slapped across the face.

"_**I would."**_ came the gruff reply.

-o-

Rukia gasped as she instantly recognized the spirit energy.

Byakuya Kuchiki turned to face the intruder standing in the gardens.

His eyes narrowed darkly when the landed on the man.

"What are _you_ doing here?" he asked coldly.

"I'm here to ask for your sister's hand." Ichigo said with a grin, dressed in his soul reaper uniform.

-o-

The noble released his powerful spiritual pressure.

"I consider it an insult for you to show your face in this household after what you did."

Byakuya's hand went down to reach for his sheathed-sword.

"Brother, don't!" Rukia interrupted.

"Silence." He threatened.

-o-

Ichigo growled. No one had the right to _ever _to speak to Rukia that way!

His own hand went down to reach for his weapon.

"I'll repeat myself Byakuya, I _want _to marry her. I'm here because I want to spend my life with Rukia… If she'll have me."

Rukia felt her jaw hit the floor.

"What makes you think you are worthy? She is a Kuchiki, royalty. You are but worthless human."

Ichigo snickered.

"Worthless am I? You forget that my family is part of the _Shiba_ clan… But enough talk, how about I prove myself to you in a fight?"

The substitute soul-reaper drew his sword aimed the tip of it at Byakuya.

Captain Kuchiki was furious. "Do you think you are man enough to fight against me? Fine! However, know that I intend to kill you in battle."

"In that case, I won't hold anything back... If I somehow manage to defeat you, then you have to let Rukia and I get married." Ichigo stated as he took a defensive stance.

"I accept your terms. I, Byakuya Kuchiki, will make you pay for sullying my sister's honor!" the noble declared as he unsheathed his sword and flash stepped out into the gardens where Ichigo stood waiting.

-o-

Rukia ran to try to stop them. As soon as she got close, they both released their full spiritual pressures, and she fell to her knees.

She was trapped; she didn't have the power to stand under their powerful spirit energy. She assumed they did it on purpose, to prevent her from interfering.

She screamed at them from the sidelines, feeling helpless as the two men she loved most in the world dueled furiously.

-o-

Fighting each other head on, Rukia knew her brother was just toying with Ichigo, making him think they were equal in terms of power…

She watched as blow after blow was blocked, neither of them really getting seriously injured, that is, until Byakua's patience snapped and he released his bankai.

Moments later, Ichigo did the same.

-o-

They weren't holding _anything_ back anymore.

Ichigo was cut up badly by Byakuya's blades.

Then Ichigo hit Byakuya head on with Getsuga Tensho.

Rukia yelled at them from the top of her lungs, she pleaded with them, she hurled insults at them, she screamed desperately to try to get them to stop.

Neither man listened to her.

Just when it seemed like Ichigo would collapse, he donned his hollow mask and began to attack the older man with renewed zealous.

-o-

Rukia grit her teeth as she watched them wound and hurt each other again and again.

Kami, it looked like they really were dueling to the death!

The lieutenant let out a silent scream as she watched Byakuya impale his blade into Ichigo's stomach.

Ichigo cried like an animal in pain and Rukia clenched her violet eyes closed…

-o-

Rukia opened her loganberry eyes, just in time to her brother collapse. The noble fell forward into a puddle of crimson blood.

Ichigo was still standing. He let out a loud cackle and tore off his hollow mask.

"I won!" He screamed triumphantly as his spiritual energy returned to normal. He put away his sword.

He turned back to Rukia and couldn't help but feel guilty when he noticed her tears.

-o-

"Oi, what's wrong midget?" he asked nonchalantly, as though he wasn't critically injured and badly bleeding.

Rukia would have beaten the crap out of him for what he said if he hadn't been so horribly beaten up already…

"Y-you fool!" she said happily as she ran to embrace him.

Afterwards she called the members of squad 4 to tend to her brother and Ichigo.

-o-

-o-

-o-

**Days Later.**

Byakuya Kuchiki was a man of his word.

As soon as he recovered from his injuries, he made the engagement between Rukia and Ichigo official.

He was upset he lost to Ichigo Kurosaki, but he conceded that a man strong enough to defeat him was a man worthy enough for his sister.

He did however forbid Rukia from staying with Ichigo in the world of the living until they got married… Instead, he made arrangements for her to stay in the Kurosaki house, under the watchful eye of the odd Isshin Kurosaki and Ichigo's twin human sisters...

Just because he had agreed to let them get married did not mean he was giving the two the green light to continue their sexual relationship before the marriage took place!

-o-

Rukia agreed to Byakuya's request of a traditional ceremony, she gave into Ichigo's request to host the wedding in the world of the living so that his family and friends could attend, and no one argued with her when she informed them she wanted a small, intimate wedding, surrounded by their closest friends and family.

The wedding took place in the gardens of a lavish country club in Karakua, and the wedding was paid for by the Kuchiki-clan.

-o-

-o-

-o-

Ichigo tugged at the ends of his black kimono-jacket sleeves.

He felt _silly_, dressed in such fine clothing. He made out familiar faces in the crowd, smiling at them awkwardly as he tried his best not to scowl, as was his natural habit. There was a photographer present, taking pictures of every scene. He could practically hear Rukia yelling in his head if she saw pictures of him scowling on their wedding day.

He then watched as his best friends started down the aisle, paired in twos, dressed in traditional Japanese clothing and kimonos.

Ichigo's stomach was in complete knots. His jitters were getting the best of him. He silently wondered if it was _normal_ for grooms to faint on their wedding day….

However, his nervousness and apprehension died down the moment he saw his beautiful bride stepping out into the gardens, arm-in-arm with his father.

Ichigo watched in awe as his dad walked her to where Byakuya Kuchiki stood waiting.

Isshin kissed her hands affectionately as he handed her off to her brother.

-o-

Ichigo's breath caught in his throat.

She was dressed in an elegant white kimono. The white dress was covered in white flowers embroidered with pure gold thread.

She looked absolutely radiant and celestial.

There was an otherworldly glow to her as she looked up at him and smiled confidently.

-o-

Suddenly Ichigo felt her confidence pouring into him. He found himself returning the smirk as he watched her walk down the aisle with poise and grace.

Rukia Kuchiki wasn't a shy bride; she was a damn proud one.

When Byakuya and Rukia reached the end of the aisle, Ichigo watched as her older brother leaned down to allow Rukia to kiss his cheek.

The noble looked up to where Ichigo stood and then back to look at Rukia as if saying to her, _'It's not too late to back out.'_

Ichigo glared at the older man for this, but Rukia smiled radiantly and caressed her bothers cheek before reaching over to take Ichigo's hands in hers.

Byakuya smiled at this and left to go take his seat as the ceremony began.

-o-

-o-

-o-

After they first got married, they spent a year traveling back and forth between the Soul Society and the world of the living.

Finally, they decided it was time to settle down and they went to live in the Soul Society permanently.

Ichigo spent two years in Squad 11, _(trying to survive)_ studying under Captain Zenpachi Zaraki.

At that time, both Kurosaki's (Ichigo and Rukia), were offered Captain positions by Head Captain Kyoraku.

Ichigo jumped at the chance, eager to escape _crazy _Kenpachi, but Rukia politely declined.

She felt like she still had a lot to learn from Captain Ukitake.

-o-

When Ichigo became Captain, he originally wanted his wife, his best friend, to become his lieutenant, but she flat-out refused! She stated she was still more than content with her place as a lieutenant for Captain Ukitake.

Ichigo had been mad at her at first (mostly because he had to have a stranger become his lieutenant), but eventually, he relented.

Head Captain Kyoraku was always assigning him to the most dangerous and risky missions (supposedly because of his power and youth, but Ichigo suspected it was because he was the only one stupid enough to do it). Soon, Ichigo was glad that his wife _wasn't _his lieutenant.

He didn't want to ever put her in harm's way if he could avoid it.

He himself didn't mind the thrill of danger or risking his life for his job, but that changed as soon as he learned Rukia was pregnant with their first child… As soon as he learned he was going to become a father, he had asked _(begged)_ Head Captain Kyoraku to assign his squad to less dangerous missions, which the older man did.

-o-

-o-

-o-

Rukia and Ichigo had a son.

He had his mother's eyes, and black hair, but it was styled short and spiky like his father's. They named him Kaien, in honor of Rukia's former mentor.

It turned out that twins really did run in the family, because two years after Kaien's birth: Rukia gave birth to two beautiful girls.

One baby had Rukia's hair-color and Ichigo's eyes, and the other had Ichigo's hair-color and Rukia's eyes. They were named Hisana and Masaki.

But the Kurosaki's weren't done yet!

Now 4 year old Kaien and 2 year old Hisana and Masaki were expecting another little sibling…

-o-

Ichigo sat on his father's porch in the world of the living. His petite wife was sitting on the step below his. She had her back leaned back against his chest. His hands were rubbing her swollen belly.

Kisuke Urahara had designed a special gigai for her and the baby.

In the background, his three children were running around with his father and twin sisters' chasing them.

He was smiling widely.

Rukia placed her small hands over his.

"What about Isshin?" she asked, bringing him out of his daydream.

"Gross! No way!"

"Hmmm, then Ichigo,"

"_C'mon, can't we be a little more creative?_"

"Byakuya?"

"Hell no! Even _Isshin _is starting to sound better…." He half-whispered.

Rukia huffed in irritation.

"Then how about I name this one after his father, Renji." She said, sticking her tongue out at the orange-haired man.

Ichigo glared at his wife.

"That wasn't funny the last two pregnancies, and it's _not _funny now."

Rukia giggled in response and reached back to flick Ichigo's nose. Ichigo tried his best to scowl at her, but he couldn't help the large grin that appeared on his face.

"Hey… What makes you **so sure** it's going to be another boy anyways? I want another girl."

"Because I'm the one who's pregnant, and I say he's going to be a boy." Rukia stated as-a-matter-of-factly.

"So? I help put her there, and I say she's going to be a little girl!"

"Well I'm the one carrying the child, and _he's a boy_. I know my business."

"Whatever, we have to think of some girl names too…"

"_Yeah, right_…"

There was a moment of pleasant silence before Rukia spoke again.

"So what do you think of the name Ichinose for our son?"

"You mean like that weird soul-reaper that was in league with the Bounts?"

"Yeah…"

"I like it."

-o-

The petite woman laughed loudly as her kids "tackled" their silly grandfather to the ground.

Soon, her laughing stopped as she watched Hisana fall to the floor and begin to cry.

Worry swept over the mother-hen as she quickly rose to her feet (as quickly as a 8-month pregnant woman could stand) and wobbled over to the child to comfort her.

Ichigo's smile grew wider as he saw Rukia fuss over little Hisana's "injury".

_He loved her. _He loved Rukia more now than when he had first fallen in love with her.

His father took a seat beside him on the porch.

"So how do you like being a father, Ichigo?" the older man asked with playful eyes.

"It's the best thing that's ever happened to me." Ichigo said proudly.

Isshin Kurosaki nodded his head.

"Four kids in less than five years, why so many so soon? Soul-reapers have such a long life-span, I figured you and Rukia-chan would wait a couple of decades before having children."

Ichigo looked over at his father, "We waited a couple of years after we got married before having children... Rukia and I talked about it a lot… In the end we decided that we wanted you, Yuzu, and Karin to get to enjoy our family too… Besides, Rukia and I have an eternity to spend together anyways." He said with a shrug.

Isshin felt tears fill his eyes, "Oh my son! How happy I am that you care! I only hope that you and Rukia-chan continue to reproduce and have lots of children! At this rate, we can form our very own special _Kurosaki_ soccer team!"

Ichigo chuckled. "Don't say anything pops, but I'm gonna try to grant your wish-"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Ichigo turned to whisper to his father, "Between you and me, I'm more than pleased keeping Rukia pregnant… In her condition, Captain Ukitake just assigns her _paperwork_. It keeps her from going out on dangerous field missions… Then she likes to take a year off to care for the baby…. And as soon as she starts _thinking _about training again**, Bam!** I get her pregnant again!" Ichigo explained with a satisfied smirk.

Ichigo watched as his father's happy expression fell.

"But son, what if Rukia-chan finds out?"

Ichigo shrugged, "Don't worry old-man, she won't find out," he said confidently.

"Uumm, I wouldn't be so sure about that," the older man grumbled, before jumping off of the porch to go play with his grandchildren.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at his father's strange behavior. Suddenly, he felt an icy glare on him.

He tensed as he sensed Rukia's spiritual energy flare.

He turned his head slowly, and found Rukia with her arms crossed angrily over her chest. Her cerulean eyes were glaring at him hatefully.

"Ichi-go" she said darkly.

The orange-haired man gulped as he stared at his very pregnant, very pissed off wife.

"R-rukia! _Honey!_ How much of that did you hear?" he said, his voice shaking.

He watched as she pulled out her old chappy-the-rabbit substitute soul candy container.

"My precious bunny, be reasonable! Err… Remember you're with child! My child!"

Rukia ignored him as she popped two pieces of soul-candy into her mouth (one for her and one for the baby).

"R-remember we p-promised never to fight in front of the kids! Think of the children my sweet-hobbit!"

The pregnant woman unsheathed her zanpakuto.

Ichigo's danger radar went off and he quickly jumped up to run away from his furious wife.

"Dance Sode-no-Shirayuki!"

"Oh come on!"

"BANKAI!" she screamed.

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

-o-

Fin!

Thank you all the people who read this story!

tangune: I added the last chapter! I hope it was worth the wait.

missstampede: Hmm… I agree with you! Looking back on the lemon, I suppose the reason I made Ichigo _so_ confident is because of my fangirl crush on him. * sigh * hehe, perhaps for my next story, I'll make him a little greener, more shy… (Although you can't see it, the chubby hamster in my head is turning!)3

hunterofcomedy: Thank you so much for your review! I suppose I did make the lemon too wordy… I'm still trying to figure out the balance and I'll most defiantly take your suggestions to heart! The slapping was supposed to be a comedic moments… so oops? In the future I will make the lemons less chatty and not-so-long… I really want to **improve** my writing, so thank you for your honesty! _(p.s. I also feel__incredibly __**honored**__ that someone as talented as you is reading my story! * squeals with joy, faints * ) _

Player Zero:_ * _hands you a cold a drink * I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

RememberTheName76: hehe, this was the last one! But I'm already thinking of my next project so just be on the lookout for it! Thank you for your review!

Kei: I hope this answered your question! Thanks for reviewing!

Be on the lookout for more of my stories in the future!


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